Box Me Out . . . Please

"Lose It!"
* decorative cardboard boxes -- sure, you see these utilized all the time on home makeover shows, perched on shelves in people's newly decluttered offices. Perhaps they are functional for some, but they are dangerous for me. What did I find as I opened some of my many decorative boxes: three years worth of calendar pages from Mary Engelbreit page-a-day calendars from the 1999-2001 years; scraps of cut scrapbook paper (that I admit that I used to use to glue to other cardboard boxes in mosaic patterns to make those boxes decorative); lots of other crap I have no business storing . . . even in a lovely box.

Not Ma Ingalls (or some similar old-fashioned woman)

"Lose It!"
* many more books, including three books on quilting -- I still believe I will learn to use my sewing machine, but I no longer believe I will ever make a quilt. I'm okay with that.

* Sesame Street counting flash cards -- tired of picking them up. They are on the floor not because they are being used for fun or learning but because they have been dumped their by one of the boys.

* more plastic crap

* more clothes I will never wear again

* grade school diary -- don't worry I ripped out the four pages I wrote on first

There's more, but I'm just giving you the highlights.

From Here to Maternity

"Lose It!"
* many items of maternity clothes -- I don't mind being pregnant, but I also don't plan to be pregnant again after this April (and if I do find myself pregnant again in the future, having no maternity clothes left will be the least of my issues). I've decided I am not obligated to save all my maternity clothes for future pregnant loved ones on the off chance that something ugly and lame to me might not be ugly and lame to them. Ugly and lame is ugly and lame. My mom is going to help me weed through my maternity pile tomorrow and select and save only the items future preggos might actually want to wear.

* baby boy clothes -- ditto the above. Saving the stuff that future nephews of mine might enjoy wearing. Donating the rest.

* random toys that I am sick of shuffling around -- mommy purges while the boys are otherwise occupied

I also want to mention that I read a novel a few years ago called From Here to Maternity. I can't remember the author's name, but I really liked the book.

I am going to SASH (and stash) less.

I lose a bunch of stuff in the Fall of 2009 that I never made time to tell you about. Tons of clothes, novels I know I will never and ever read again, and about eight more cookbooks. One of those cookbooks was a Macy's Culinary Circle one that featured my foodie crush Rick Bayless, but I had to get honest with myself that the recipes in that particular cookbook generally exceeded my skills and my patience. I can't remember what else I lost, but that's just a sign that the stuff was really meant to be lost.

2010 is going to be a HUGE year for losing, mostly because it has to be. Here's a partial tally so far . . .

"Lose It!"
* many more clothes, particularly ones that will not interest me at all once I am finally not pregnant and fitting into "regular" clothes

* at least six sashes -- why does a high-waisted girl who never tucks in her shirts and prefers not to cinch her waist in any fashion have a single sash, not to mention six of them? When there's no good answer to that question, there's no reason to keep stashing sashes.

* some kitchen accessories -- I won't go into detail, but I am having to grapple with tough questions, such as, "Am I ever actually going to host a Mexican Fiesta?"

* back issues of magazines that I love but can no longer justify keeping around on the off chance that I will ever reread them -- so long Bookmarks and Eating Well (comforted knowing that all the Eating Well recipes are on their website).

* socks with no matches -- I've held on to some of these lonely socks for years, thinking "You could use them as dusters or turn them into puppets." But I won't. Forgive me for not trying to find these socks a good home or use.

I know I'm forgetting stuff, but that's a start. I think I'm moving on to shoes soon and then going to do a nice weed-through of the craft cabinet.

What have you been losing in the New Year's Rush? I need ideas and inspiration.

I'm still alive and so is this blog . . .

. . . so please stay tuned in coming days and join me as I continue spending a "lifetime trying to use (or lose) the 'stuff' crowding my life."

Neither Decorative Nor Functional

"Lose It!"

* huge toy purge over the weekend and still more to do this upcoming weekend -- I'll spare you the details but we found plenty to toss and plenty to donate. It feels awesome to have canvas bins be sort of organized and not filled to the brim.

* leather-esque bin, formerly used to store blankets and throws -- If you look at the picture of the ravaged bin, you think, "Well, that's a no brainer." Indeed. Yet, I continued "using" the bin even when two of the sides were hanging by threads and it no longer decorative or functional.

* assorted junk -- from junk drawer in the kitchen. You know, expired coupons, junk mail, and other random junk. The kind of stuff you keep in a junk drawer. Of course, it's starting to fill up again . . .

What are you losing these days?

Straight to the bin, baby.

"Lose It!"
* one inflatable balance ball -- it's supposed to live in the basement, but Bub brings upstairs all the time and nothing good comes of that. Today, he deflated it, and I thought, "This thing is so gone." But I didn't actually toss it and thus, after nap, Bub began throwing a large piece of limp plastic around.

* one music table -- the table has been parted from its accompanying drumsticks for months now, so noise is not an issue. But damn it, the thing is large and cumbersome and I don't need it in my life. I've thrice tried to get rid of it, but it's been rescued from the giveaway pile by Bub and by our cleaning lady.

Guess where I'm heading folks? Straight to the bins in the alley. I'll have an item in each hand.

In other news, I've got lots more stuff I've unloaded or am planning to lose soon. I'm still alive and so is the project. So there.

Backdated.

"Lose It!"
* Ellie's Krieger's Healthy Appetite cookbook -- beautiful cookbook, recipes sound great, but I know I'll never make one of them.

Cookbook Challenge Stats: 16 down/37 to go
* light blue cargo pants from 2004 -- they are too short for me and also too tight, have shed illogical thought that if I lost "five or ten pounds" the pants would then be long enough

* eight empty baby wash bottles -- the boys enjoy playing with them in the tub, but I'm tired of pouring stagnant water from them before the next evening's bath. Also, Little Bit has been trying to drink out of them. Gross.

* some more stuff that I can't remember . . .

Confession:
I went to Dollar Tree today, defying (and not for the first time) my 2009 vow to stop bringing crap into my house. I got some stuff to do some crafts around here. Not horrible, but still, crap.

Request:
Give me some inspiration. I'm in the mood to rid of big stuff. You know, to make it look as if I'm really losing it around here. Tell me what to get rid of.

Okay, I'm going to recommit to this blog and this project.

Yum-No

"Lose It!"
* Rachael Ray's 30-Minute GET REAL Meals cookbook -- I enjoy Rachael, and I'm sure I'd enjoy her food if she were to prepare it for me. What I find, however, is that I never feel like trying her recipes when I read them, only when I've seen her prepare them first. Plus, the GET REAL cookbook is a strange, pseudo-low carb thing that seems a little forced. Don't get me wrong though, this is not a diss to R squared.

Cookbook Challenge: 15 down/38 to go

Just Jammin'

"Use It!"
* the freezer jam pectin and plastic Ball jars I purchased in May -- after thrice buying four pounds of strawberries with the intention of making jam (they got eaten not thrown out), today Bub and I made strawberry jam as Little Bit looked on. Easy peasy and tastes just like my Grandma's. I am counting this as a "use it" because I would not have been surprised if the Ball jars and pectin sat ignored in the pantry all summer.

Now, what to do with the glass Ball jars I purchased eight years ago when the hardware store in my neighborhood had a going-out-of-business sale . . . perhaps attempt to make cooked jam of some sort without scalding myself.

Another shirt off my back . . .

"Lose It!"
* actually, two more t-shirts off my back -- note to self, anything of the Sonoma brand at Kohl's does NOT work for you. MEP, you may like the fabric or the color and certainly the price, but you will not really like how it fits.

No Space in the Space Bag

"Lose It!"

I continue to add baby and toddler clothes (30 pieces or so the past two days) to the large donation pile in our basement. While I'm at it, I've been sorting the "keepers" and storing them in the space bags I got at Costco. Have to say I'm impressed with those things, and Bub has really enjoyed using the vacuum to suck the air out.

Next challenge: rearrange/weed through other crap around here so that I can fill the newly-emptied plastic bins that used to house the clothes.

"You've made better."

"Use It!"
*Cook Yourself Thin Cookbook -- followed recipe for Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna which was, well, just okay. I think I can do better with my own improvisational lasagna recipe. Also, I feel like I need to note that I did not have this cookbook when 2009 began, but that I gave away a cookbook when I bought it to preserve stats for the Cookbook Challenge.

Cookbook Challenge Stats: 14 down/39 to go

Don't stop till you get enough?

"Lose It!"
* several t-shirts, capris, and pairs of shorts -- many of my summer clothes have been with me for many summers now. I don't care what season my stuff is (indeed, my favorite pair of capris is from May 2003, and I still have a few pairs from the late 90s), but I do feel like stuff I'm not wearing does not need to take up the limited space in my closet and drawers. So, some old and some newish stuff has hit the giveaway pile. In the interest of full disclosure, I will admit that some new shorts and t-shirts have made their way into my house. I think though that I have managed to follow the one in/one out policy that organizational experts recommend. I'm going to make another pass through the closet, drawers, and bins and try to make it a net loss of stuff.

"Use It!"
* my cd collection -- I had an idea yesterday that I would go on itunes (have a gift card) and buy my five favorite Michael Jackson songs. I was looking forward to thinking about which five to choose and to listening to them while cleaning up after dinner. I always think about Michael Jackson in terms of my Thriller tape and didn't really think I had any CDs. On a whim though, I decided to flip through my CD case (not easily accessible, but I got to it). I realized I had the Thriller and HIStory CDs so I was all set and effectively made $5. I also realized that I have not loaded 80% of my music onto my itunes. So, there's a little project for my spare time.

What are you using and losing these days?

How could it not be good?

"Use It!"
* two of the eight packages of organic basil purchased for a $1 (total for all packages, not each individual one) when my Jewel closed last week.

* food processor -- worth noting because I keep forgetting I know how to use it now and store it in a hard-to-access place, making it even less likely to get used

* cookbook entitled Joy in Simplicity: Creative Cooking with Artist Nancy Noel -- made Basil Butter (see above). The verdict: see title.


Cookbook Challenge Stats: 13 down/40 to go

Don't count me out yet.

To all seven or so of my loyal Just Use It or Lose It Readers,

I am not giving up on my using and losing endeavor. Please stay tuned!

Thanks,
MEP

Off Target

"Lose It!"
* floor lamp-- yes, it provides light, but it also tilts constantly to one side and looks like crap -- at one point it had a faux stained glass shade, but that broke off . . . that's what $49.99 could get you at Target in 2003.

Foiled!

"Use It!"
* miniature cookie sheet thing
Before our wedding, my husband and I registered for a toaster oven. "We" also registered for two miniature cookie sheet type pans that fit inside the toaster oven. I think someone had told me, "Oh, they're great. You can use them to bake just a few cookies in the toaster oven." Um, I don't have the foresight to have cookie dough just waiting in my fridge or freezer, and I certainly don't have the willpower to limit myself to a few cookies if I've gone to the trouble of making some cookie dough. Anyway, I have pretty much ignored those miniature pans.

We ran out of foil yesterday, and so when I started making my pizza bagel for breakfast this morning, I was like, "Damn, no foil. I'm foiled. Now, the cheese will fall off and burn and the toaster oven will start smoking." But then, I thought about that little cookie sheet, placed my bagel on it, and was good to go. In fact, I don't think I'll need to use foil in the toaster oven anymore. I can use this little pan instead. Woo hoo.

"Lose It!"
* one orange platter -- lovely, but not mine
Speaking of bridal registries, I attended a shower on Saturday. Along with my gift, I brought the bride-to-be a platter that she left at my house two years ago and that I have had ever since in spite of having it washed and on the counter on at least three occasions when she has been at my house and in spite of seeing her person many other times in the past two years.

Garage Barrage

"Lose It!"

Hubby cleaned the garage today and the end result is just beautiful. Parking spots for the strollers and the wagon. All the balls in the box. A special spot for the tailgating chairs. All the fast food bags in the trash.

* many items were lost in the process, and though hubby gave me a yes/no vote on a handful of things, he mostly made command decisions. He tossed more things than I would have but I won't miss a single thing that he tossed. And so, I think he needs to become a more active partner in the JUIorLI project. Sure, most of the crap around here is mine or the kids, but I could use a little push letting go sometimes.

Eat Clean Plate Club

"Use It!"
* Tosca Reno's Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook -- not sure why I purchased this cookbook, a woman who drinks a minimum of three Diet Cokes a day is not really a clean eater . . . but I used the cookbook to make Herbed Spinach Yogurt Cheese Dip. The end result was pretty tasty, though next time I will learn how to read so that I use lowfat yogurt (as called for) instead of nonfat (what was I thinking? I was thinking that the recipe called for nonfat yogurt).

* cheesecloth, fresh basil, a tub of plain nonfat yogurt, defrosted package of frozen spinach -- these are items I obtained with this recipe in mind, and I am pleased that I actually followed through and used them.

Cookbook Challenge Stats: 12 down/41 to go